Spinal cord compression

Spinal cord compression develops when bone fragments from a vertebral fracture, a tumor, abscess, ruptured intervertebral disc or other lesion compress the spinal cord. It is regarded as a medical emergency independent of its cause, and requires swift diagnosis and treatment to prevent long-term disability due to irreversible spinal cord injury.

Symptoms suggestive of cord compression are back pain, a dermatome of increased sensation, paralysis of limbs below the level of compression, decreased sensation below the level of compression, urinary and fecal incontinence and/or urinary retention. Lhermitte’s sign (intermittent shooting electrical sensation) and hyperreflexia may be present.

Diagnosis is by X-rays but preferably magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the whole spine. The most common causes of cord compression are tumors, but abscesses and granulomas (e.g. in tuberculosis) are equally capable of producing the syndrome. Tumors that commonly cause cord compression are lung cancer (non-small cell type), breast cancer, prostate cancer, renal cell carcinoma, thyroid cancer, lymphoma and multiple myeloma.

Dexamethasone (a potent glucocorticoid) in doses of 16 mg/day may reduce edema around the lesion and protect the cord from injury. It may be given orally or intravenously for this indication.

Surgery is indicated in localized compression as long as there is some hope of regaining function. It is also occasionally indicated in patients with little hope of regaining function but with uncontrolled pain. Emergency radiation therapy (usually 20 Gray in 5 fractions) is the mainstay of treatment for malignant spinal cord compression. It is very effective as pain control and local disease control. Some tumors are highly sensitive to chemotherapy and may be treated with chemotherapy alone.

Once complete paralysis has been present for more than about 24 hours before treatment, the chances of useful recovery are greatly diminished, although slow recovery, sometimes months after radiotherapy, is well recognized.

The median survival of patients with metastatic spinal cord compression is about 12 weeks, reflecting the generally advanced nature of the underlying malignant disease.

Tips on houseplants care

Most of the people are with the passion to grow houseplants, but majority of them are neglecting to take care of the poor plants. With their negligence most of the houseplants are killed. The best thing you can do for your indoor plants is to learn something about the growing conditions and provide as close to those conditions as possible. If you see a problem developing, take action quickly. I am giving you some of the basic tips in taking care of the houseplants. Any houseplant requires very little care and minimal maintenance. The below said tips may help you and your houseplants.

Do’s

• Use a good potting mix, not garden soil at the time of planting.
• Use a pot that drains well and a saucer big enough to take the excess water.
• Let it evaporate up around the plant.
• Water when the top inch of the soil is dry
• Indirect but bright light works best.
• You may need to wipe the leaves once or twice a year with a damp soft cloth.
• Cleaning the leaves of your houseplants actually makes less work for you in the long run.
• Buy a liquid plant food formulated for your kind of plant.
• Fertilizer applications should be more frequent when the plants are growing.
• If the leaves are dusty, use a fine brush or soft cloth to clean them.

Don’ts

• Don’t put your plant in a place where it gets very little light
• Don’t put it in a sunny window either.
• Avoid the soft water salts.
• Over watering is one of the biggest plant killers
• Too much fertilizer or wrong kind of fertilizer badly affects the plant. So avoid that.

Some houseplants actually make the air fresh. I hope these tips may help you in having the basic knowledge about the maintenance of the houseplants.

A Hair Iron And Modern Hair-Straighteners

A hair iron or hair tong is a tool used to change the structure of the hair with the help of heat. There are two general kinds: Straightening irons, used to straighten the hair, and curling irons, used to make the hair curly. Straightening irons may also be called flat irons, but not to be confused with clothes flat irons. There are also irons, called styling irons, which can be used to both straighten and curl the hair. One tool means that you can straighten one portion of the strand and curl the other.

Modern flat irons

High-end modern hair straighteners have ceramic heating elements, which cause less damage to hair, are more effective and heat up faster than non-ceramic coated heating plates. Less expensive brands usually do not have ceramic heating elements though some may have a paint-like coating that gives the appearance of ceramic plating.

Many high-end straighteners claim to use ionic and infrared technology, which claims to seal in moisture and oils and to reduce static and frizz. Depending on the hair type, repeated use of hair straighteners, like most other heat styling tools, can cause varying amounts of damage such as split ends, thinning of the hair shaft and even causing hair to become brittle and prone to breakage. Generally, after extensive damage, hair will show signs of dryness and display an unhealthy appearance. However, many companies, such as L’Oreal, GHD and Tresemme, have began to manufacture heat protection sprays, shampoos and cream which aim to reduce the amount of damage that is caused by the use of straighteners.

Hair straighteners should only be used on dry hair, unless they are specially made with vents to let the moisture out. These sorts of irons are usually called “Wet Dry” irons. Based on the materials used in the heating plates, hair irons can be classified as ceramic, with tourmaline and traditional metal flat iron. Ceramic hair irons are believed to be gentle to the hair. Ceramic hair irons with tourmaline has a piezoelectric effect and a pyroelectric effect on the hair.

Do Nothing

For those of us who are non-stop workaholics, doing nothing will be difficult! If you’re like the Energizer bunny in that you keep going, and going, and going, here’s how to stop once in a while, think pleasant thoughts, visit the beach, stare at the water, and just do nothing.

Plan ahead

Whether it’s an hour, a day, a week, a month, or a year of doing nothing, cancel all of your appointments for that block of time. Try to pick the most boring week or day, a day where you’ll most likely sleep most of the time.

Let people know

Tell everyone that you’re going to be “busy” and will be unavailable. Whether you choose to tell them that you’re actually setting aside some time to do nothing, or you just give them the vague explanation, tell them not to call, visit, or interrupt unless it’s a real emergency.

Find a quiet, private place

Go somewhere you don’t feel pressured to do anything. This might be your bedroom, the backyard, or a local park. Find that place and go there.

Set your alarm

Set an alarm of some kind to go off when your “nothing” time is over, so that you don’t have to constantly look at the clock and count the minutes.

Turn off the phone

Turn off your cell phone, work phone, pager, PDA, Blackberry, computer, Beeper, Radio, Television and any other means of sending or receiving calls or messages. These distractions will only keep you from enjoying the nothing.

Sit by yourself

Feel the wind, the sun on your face, the chair touching your bottom. Listen to the rustle of the trees, birds chirping, water flowing. Never think about the past or future. Avoid the temptation to turn on the TV, listen to music, write a note to you, get a bite to eat, or anything else. The only thing you should do is go to the bathroom.

Learn how to free your mind

Clear your mind of all thoughts of work worries, family, etc. by simply letting them go. Doing this not only allows your body to do nothing, but your mind as well. However, do not be worried if you find yourself thinking of things. Freeing up one’s mind is actually very difficult to master, and often requires more discipline than some free time.

Tips For safe Online Shopping

Online shopping is the process consumers go through to purchase products or services over the Internet. An online shop, e-shop, e-store, Internet shop, web shop, online store, or virtual store evokes the physical analogy of buying products or services at a bricks-and-mortar retailer or in a shopping mall.

Tips for the safe Online Shopping

1. Shop at Secure Web Sites.
2. Research the Web Site before You Order.
3. Read the Web Site’s Privacy and Security Policies.
4. Opt for the safest payment that is through debit cards or credit cards or cheques or direct cash etc that would be better for you.
5. Never Give Out Your Social Security Number that can steal your identity.
6. Disclose Only the Bare Facts When You Order.
7. Check the Web Site Address.
8. Keep Your Password Private.
9. Check the Web Site Address so that you can make sure that you are dealing with the correct company.
10. Always have a print copies for the order placed by you so that you can prevent from fraudulent activities.
11. If you are shopping online for the bulk amount of goods then pay attention to the shipping facts.
12. Make your online shopping comfortable with the local companies.
13. Even under the best of circumstances, shoppers sometimes need to return merchandise. Check the web site for cancellation and return policies so that you can have a look on details and modes of payment, shipping costs and shipping insurances etc.
14. Consider Using Single-use Card Numbers.
15. Be Wary of Identity Theft and be Cautious with “Electronic Signatures”

The above said are some of the tips to be notices compulsorily at the time of online shopping.

Self-monitoring theory

Self-monitoring theory is a contribution to the psychology of personality, proposed by Mark Snyder in 1974. The theory refers to the process through which people regulate their own behavior in order to “look good” so that others will perceive them in a favorable manner. It distinguishes between high self-monitors, who monitor their behavior to fit different situations, and low self-monitors, who are more cross-situationally consistent. Snyder designed a questionnaire to assess self-monitoring called the Self-Monitoring Scale, based on the assumption that high self-monitoring could be defined as consisting of:

1. High concern with the social appropriateness of one’s actions;

2. Use of social comparison information;

3. Ability to monitor one’s behavior to fit different situations;

4. Ability to do this in specific situations;

5. Trait variability

On his original version of the Self-Monitoring Scale, he found that Stanford University students scored significantly higher than psychiatric inpatients, but significantly lower than people in the acting profession. The theory is of interest in that it makes an original contribution to the debate on traits versus Situationism. It effectively says that trait consistency can be found in low self-monitors, whereas a situations framework is more appropriate for high self-monitors. Subsequent research using the self-monitoring scale, in which it has been analyzed using factor analysis, has questioned whether the scale really – as Snyder believed – measures a homogeneous concept.